Silverbear, the leading provider of software for membership organisations, has steered the Royal College of Nursing’s (RCN) migration of their Microsoft Dynamics 365 system to the cloud in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The RCN is the world’s largest nursing union and professional body, providing online functionality for nurses to manage administration and access resources. The new system, which recently went live, is used by over 800 staff, supporting over 450,000 nursing members and handling near £7m of subscription income each month.
Since 2018, Silverbear have been working with the RCN to redevelop the Dynamics 365 platform to be as efficient and cost effective as possible. Silverbear worked hand-in-hand with Microsoft who made the highly specialist resources available to both Silverbear and to the RCN, helping them carry on with the project throughout the pandemic. The RCN has seen a dramatic increase in operational activity since the pandemic began, as it works to support nurses, students and nursing support workers throughout their working life as they help patients across the UK.
It was also impossible to predict how 800 users would adjust to a new system remotely, whilst the team was not able to offer support in person. Silverbear carried out testing to ensure a smooth transition, ensuring any work caused limited disruption to the RCN. Microsoft and Silverbear worked together to ensure that the RCN could continue to operate around the clock so its nurses could continue to do their vital work.
Silverbear’s technology has been successfully implemented and has integrated seamlessly with the Microsoft Dynamics 365 platform. A key benefit is that it is compliant with Microsoft’s Common Data Service, allowing the RCN’s system to interoperate with Silverbear function and design, so the RCN’s team can add its own strategic value and customization. Rather than outsourcing the work, as it had done previously, the RCN could now develop further capability themselves and increase user engagement.
Carl Grieves, Chief Executive of Silverbear, commented: “We are delighted to have worked with RCN on such a large-scale project that can improve services provided to nurses across the UK. Silverbear's technology platform has been able to deliver tangible results for RCN, adding strategic value not just online support to its members. We are proud to have given RCN the platform to provide members a better user experience, and ensure that it is optimized to process the large amounts of revenue and member data it receives daily in a cost effective manner. Working collaboratively with Microsoft during the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been able to support such an important organisation at a crucial time.'
Mark Williams, CRM Programme Director at RCN, said: “To pull off a transformation project of this size is not an easy prospect, let alone at a time when we have never been busier and staff on both sides are working remotely. Silverbear provided the guidance we needed to get the project successfully across the line to support our members in challenging times. The software is now live and initial feedback from users has been positive. Microsoft and Silverbear’s technology has allowed us to take our organization to a new level and we’re proud to be able to improve services to the nursing community across the UK.”
Marie Abery, Dynamics Business Group Director, Microsoft UK, commented: “I am delighted to see Silverbear’s membership solution successfully live for the Royal College of Nursing, supporting the 450K nurses, midwives, Healthcare Assistants, Assistant Practitioners and student nurses. Bringing the membership solution & expertise of Silverbear together with Microsoft Dynamics and RCN’s knowledge of their members, we can launch a platform to provide services, resources, advice and support to this highly valued nursing community”.
Download our case study to find out how Silverbear helped with their transition.